Ver. 12.-<J-loriji~d. I. THE GRBAT BND OF TRB CHRISTIAN VOCATION rs TO GLORIFY TBB NAHE OF CHRIST, The blessings for which St. Paul has been pmying are to lead up to this great resull 1. The Christian lives for Christ. Christ is the chief Corner- Btone of the finished temple as well as the Foundation with which the buildin<> is begun. He is the Omega as well as the Alpha. We begin with bim; in him too we end. Receiving all our grace from Christ, we are to devote our lives to hiU:. 2'. T1ie <Jhristia,1 lives for the glory of Ghrist. We cannot minister to his wants directly as did those women who gave of their substance during his earthly humiliation- though we can do so virtually when we give to his brethren. But we can minister to his glory 88 directly as did those disciples who cast their garments in his path and hailed his entrance into Jerusalem with shouts of praise. 3. The Christian honours Christ by gl<>:ifring his Na':1e.. The Name is not. me!ely the distinctive appellation, but the descriptive charactensnc. To Jesus there 1s given "the Name which is above every name" (Phil. ii. 9). His Name is what is known of him and praised in'him, i.e. his fame. So we speak of one making a name. We cannot add to the greatness and gloriousness of our Lord. But we can make his fame to be more widely spread and more highly exalted amon!! men. JL WHEN THE NAHB OF CHRIST 18 GLORIFIBD BIS PEOPLE SHARE TBB GLORY, 1. ~ u a prospect of glorification for Christians. The doleful plaint of the despised sufferer is not t.o be the only song of the Church. Not only will joy follow sorrow, but exaltation will succeed humiliation. The Thessalonian Christians were a despised and persecuted community living among cruel, scornful neighbours. This trying condition w&11 not to be permanent. For their shame they would have double glory in the end. 2. Christian glorification follows the glorification of Christ, The first point is the glorifying of our God's Name; that of bis people comes second. The order is significant. (1) We must not seek our own glory, but in seeking Christ's ours will follow unsought. (2) Until the master is glorified the servants must remain in obscurity. The great glory of the second advent will be followed by the exaltation of the Church. 3. <Jhristian glorification depends cm union with Christ. We are to be glorified in him. (1) All that makes the Christian glorious comes from Christ. Withou1 him we a.re shamed and dark and dead. (2) Glory comes to us through ou, sharing Christ's glory, as the clouds are glorified in the light of the rising sun. llL THE GLORIFICATION OF CHRIST AND BIS PEOPLE ARISES FBOX A WORTHY l'"DL· FILIIE:l."T OF THE ClllllllTI.A.N CALLING ACCORDING TO DIVINE GRACE. 1. It arises from a worthy fulfilment of the Christian calling. St. Paul prayed that God would count bis people worthy of their calling for this express purpose, that they might glorify Christ, etc. (ver. 11). We glorify Christ by our lives. Songs of praise go for little if our con- duct dishonours our Lord. The richest anthem of praise riet's from the silent living of a pure and useful Christian life. Our own glory is also only possible when our life in Christ has been fruitful. 2. It depe'Tlda on Divine grace. It is "according to the grace," etc., i.e. the glory corresponds to the grace. The more grace we have the greater will be the glory. Fulness of grace brings fulneBB ofglory.-W. F. A.
EXPOSITION. of excitement and e.Iarm. The apostle CHAPTER II. reminds them of his former instructioilll on CollTENTS.-The e.postle DOW proceeds t.o this subject; how he bed told them tho.t the principal object which he he.d in view before the coming of the day of the Lord in writing this Epistle. The Thessaloniaill! there should be e. gree.t apostRBy, e.ud the me.n had adopted erroneoUB notions c-onceming of sin, whose nature and chamcteristics he the e.dvent; they supposed that the de.y of had described to them, should be revealed; the Loni WW! imminent, and, in COlll!e4Uence but that at preirent there wu a r1111tre.ining of thiB belief, they were thrown int.o a state influence which prevented hJa applar&nce. cu. 11. 1-17.J 'l'IJt.; SECOND EPISTLE TO THE THESSAL0NJANB. 23